clausius



2 S. U Tl S U A L C R H C.

l(No Model.)

REGOIL OPBRATED FIREARM.

Patented Nov. 16,1897.

.lll/vcr (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

C. H. R. OLAUSIUS. REGOIL OPBRATED FIREARM.

No. 593,835. Patented Nov. 16.1897.

ivf/w czawzmczammd/ SWE.

UNITED t :Ci'frnfrnsgl e CLAUS n. n.- cLaUslUs, or HAMBURG, GERMANY. e Y l,

. ancona-onanieren FIREARM.'

srncmcarroe forming para er meters retest No. 593,835, dated November 1e, is'ezf Applioltlon iiled February 5, 1898. Serial No. 578,116.A (No model.) Patented in Germany January Z9, 1895, No. 87,663 {in} Belgium November 15,1895, lo. 118,361, in England December 31,1895, En. 25,042; in Swedeg December 31,1895, No, 7.833; in Italy December 31, 18,95, No. 0,515gln Hungary December 31, 1895, No. 7,102; in Norwayv December 31,1895, Io.,728; in Switzerland December 31, 1895, Ho. 11,481 in France December 31, 1895, No. 252,881, and in Austria Feb A Arusty 6, 1898, Ho. 46/447.

.'l'o all whom may concern:

Be it known that LaCnaUs i1, R. CLAUsrUs, a subject of the German E niperor, and a resident of Hamburgin the German Empire,have 5 invented certain new and useful Improvements in Brooch-Loading Firearms, (for which patents have been obtained in the following countriemtowit; Germany, No. 87,66!,dated I, January 29, 1895; Belgium, No, 118,361, 1o dated N oyembr 15, 1895; Great Britain,No. 25,042, dated December 81, 1895; Sweden, No. 7,833, dated.. December 31,1895; Italy, No. 40,515, dated December 31, 1895; Hungary, No. 7,102, dated December 31, 1895; 15,'Norway, No.- 4,728, dated December 3l, 1895 Switzerland, No. 11,481, dated December 31, 1895; France, No. 252 881, dated December 31, iseaane'austria, bio.' 1o/447, dated February 6, 1896,) of which the following is a zo specification.

My present invention relates to improvements in breech-loading firearms, especially of that class in which the barrel and the breech-bolt are movably arrangcd,so that they z5 may recoil together in tiring, but may be independently forced forward again by springpower for the-purpose of opening or laying bare the loading-chamber of the breech-f rame, which` class of breech-loaders is known as straight pull-holt guns. y f-The invention comprises a peculiarly-con- "structed breech-closing head arranged between thebreech-bolt and the barrel andl adapted to make a turning and sliding movement, which are utilized for coupling or uncoupling the breech-bolt and the barrel accordingly; and theobjcct of the im prove ments is to secure a reliable closing of the breech by couplingthe said movable closing-headof the breech-bolt to the barrel and to pcrmit,on the other hand, an easy and ready uncoupling of the barrel from the temporarily-retained closing-head when the said barrel alone is shifted forward by its spring after the recoil. 45 .o render the present invention properly understood, I will proceed to describe, as an example, a hand-firearm arranged in accord-- ance with the same, reference being had' to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of Aout the several views.

reference marked thereon, which form a part 15o in theiry respective positions. after.z firing,

Figs. 1a and 1b are cross-sections on the lines y'.

1 1 and 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 1LA vis a detailed View showing the closing-head-in longitudil.: nal side elevation and illustrating the cop eration of the same with the breech-bolt Fig. 2 is a top plan view, partlyinsection, o the improved breech-loading gun 'showribyv Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a similar .sectional elevation as Fig. 1, the parts being shown in their 65 respective positions before firing. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 3. Figf'f E 4 is a top plan View of Fig. 3, partly in section. Figs. 5 and 6 are views, partly in scction, illustrating the mode of coperation of 7o the breech-bolt, the closing-head, and the ,barrel during the forward motion of the latter in order to uncouple the locked breechbolt or its movable closing-head, respectively,

from the barrel. Figs. 7 and 8 are detailed 75 views showing the structural features of the closing head and the breech bolt, respectively. l". Similar letters refer to similar parts through- The movable barrel a, arranged in a suitable groove of the stock b, is guided in the'` usual manner in rings attached to thc stock, the rings being not shown in the drawings. Upon the rear end of the barrcla is screwed 85 a socket a, provided on its interior wall with lugs or projections a'. From the rear and side or surface of this socket there are vextending two -shapcd sldc-rai1s as, engaging a dovetaileshapedguide-groove of the 9o breech-frame or breech-plated', sunk into the stockfb and forming at the same time a part of the path ofy the breech-bolt c and its mov-` able closing-head Z, as willy bedcscribed later' on. iA-recoil-springe;'arranged in a suitable 915 `recessof-the stock-b and acti-ng upon av shoulder af'ofpt'lic barrel, vhas"tlrcvtcndency.tokeep the 'barrel fin -itsforwardposition-or to return f E `shaped rails ai.

barrel, is ada ptcd to slide on the breech-framev fr and on the rearwardly-extending rails ai of the said socket t In order to give the breechbolt e a reliable guide during its sliding motion, the breech-boltr is furnished atits lower front part with two interiorvgrooves ej, engaging or embracing the upper edges of the (See Figs. 1'?, 3', and 8.) The breech-bolt c contains the firing mechanism and the movable closing-'head l, which both will bc explained more particularly hereinafter. A spring,r 7s, placed in a recess k' of the stock or the breech-fraaie r, respectively,

and adapted to act upon a projection e5 of the-v breechbolt e, tends" to keep the said breechybolt e in its forward position or to return it y thereto.

. On firing, the breech-bolt e, being coupled to the barrel by means ot the movable -head Z, which closes the breech of the said barrel,

is rccoiled', together with the barrel, by the action of the gases of explosion. The breechbolt e being thus forced to the rear for a sufficient extent is caught bya stud or nib g,whieh slips in front of a nose c on the rear end of the said breeeh-bolt. Accordingly the latter is locked in its rear position, while the barrel a. is shifted forward againunder the action of the spring e and thereby becomes automatically uneoupled from the breech-bolt c and its movable head 7, respectively, as hcrei natter more particularly described. Thus between the barrel and the locked breech-bolt is produced, as clearl y shown by Figs. l'and 2, a free loading-space or loading-chamber f', into which a cartridge /rmay be inserted by hand or by raising it. up through a suitable slot ofthe frame r from a lower magazine by means of any well-known cartridge-elevator u. Then pressure is applied tothe outwardlyprojecting knob of the lever i, which is mounted in a suitable chamber or recess of the stock and carries the aforesaid stud or nib g, the latter is depressed in front ot the nose c' ot the breech-bolt, so that the same is released -onunlocked from the said nib y and the breeehm', movably supported' inthe breech-bolt, willv have struck against the nib o' of the trigger- .rel and to tire the same.

lever o, Fig. 3, andy in consequence thereof the forward end m2 of the said tiring-pin mis held back, with the iringspriug m3 in com.-

pression, to such an extent that it does not yet enter into the cartridge contained in the barrel; 'While the breech-bolt c is shooting forward and pushing the cartridge into the barrel, the cylindrically-shaped breech-clos ing head I, which is movably inserted into a recess ef', provided in the fore part ofbreeelr bolt c, and which head has a hole l*i through it along its axis, projects beyond the forward end m2 of the firing-pin m and prevents the latter from entering the cartridge. During the last instant of the forward movement only the firing-pin m and the breech-closing head Zare held back, (the firing-pin by the nib o of the trigger-lever, as already mentioned,

and the breech-closing head Z in 'a manner hereinafter described,) and the breechfbo'it moves forward alone to such an extent that after the' disengagement of the trigger-nib o' from the nose m' of the tiring-pin m the latter can be shot forward by the tiring-spring ma in its guide-slot m" sutlicicntly to causo the point at the forward end m2 of the tiring-pin. m to penetrate into the cartridge in the han immediately after the tiring the barrel and the breeclbboit con.- nectcd' therewith are moved back: again by the backward pressure of the gases, and, at the completion oftheir recoil movement the breech-bolt is retained by theaforesaid nib g,

which engages with the nose c' of the breechv bolt c, whereupon the barrel is disconnected and shot forward bythe s'tock'spring c. empty cartridge-case has meanwhiie been held 'back in the loading-chamber (thus opened) by means of an extractor I on the breech-closing head I, which engages in the rear annular groove of the cartridge-ease, and may be ejected from herein the usual mann-er. In the Space hollowcd outof the stock for the trigger-lever o and the lever i, that carries the stud or nib q, that engages with the nose c' of the brecel1-bolt,thcrc is also mounted a third lever p, the upturned and forked for ward end or nib p' ot' which projects-into the path ot' the nose e' ot' the breech-bolt and passes up behind the said nose when the breech-boit is shot forward, in orderthat the said breech-bolt may not be thrown back again by the strongly-strained tiring-spring m so long as the gun is not tired.

During the forward movement of the breech-bolt the nose t' thereof slides over the inclined top of the forked uib p', while the nose n1' ot' the tiring-pin nl passes. along through the groove thereof. In. the saine mann-er when the breecli-bolt recoils its noso e' moves over the inclined top of the aforesaid stud ornib g, with which it then engages.

The small lever The is not only provided with v the forked'nlb p, nt has its arms divided.

l ceases ii p, which is also capable of being depressed -in- 'A f' dependently of the trigger-lever by means of a y knob p'Fig. 2,thatprojects laterally through Y the stockb, so as to'cause the grooved nib p "-'Vothe lever@ to release the nose c of the breech-bolt, whereupon the said breech-bolt t fshoots back slightly Without the shot being 'icfiired "Then the breech-bolt may be drawn }bacl;`completely by means of the handle e2 on vthebreech-bolt, the latter or the headZ thereof being thereby uncoupled from the barrel-(Which remains at rest) and the breech- -rsfboltbeing caught by the nib g engaging the nosec'. Then the cartridge, which has re- "-"xrrained undischarged and has been drawn .back into the loading space or chamber f by n the extractor Z, maybe taken out-'that is to "ze say, the gunmay thus be unloaded Without firing. In consequence of the shooting hack lofthe'breech-bolt the firing-spring m3 is uncocked, so that the firearm is thereby secured againstbeing tired-,while the breech-bolt is u 1'2"5-irii'fthis position; but if the shot be fired by pulling the `trigger o2' the trigger-lever o 4 2 pushes downward the lever p with the grooved nib 1J', so that this grooved nib is held down zoutof the path of the breech-bolt, which is "driven back with the barrel, because the backward'pressure of the explosion-gases is exerted instantaneously andwhile the finger of the marksman is still holding down the trigger-lever o.

The foriardly-propeiiing spring kof the breech-bolt and the'-ring-spi';ing'm3-have a certain peculiar mutual relation duringthe last instant of the forward movement of the breech-bolt. The propelling-spring l: is capable in consequence of the kinetic energyit has received of stillcompressing the' firingspring m3, although by that time. the resistance of the tiring-spring ma has become greater than the pushing force of the propeiling-spring k and is overcome only with the aid of the aforesaid energy. Consequently, as already stated, the cocked tiringspring m3 is able to push back the breechi bolt to some extent in opposition to the cocked propelling-spring k after the grooved nib p' l is depressed, in order to enable an .inserted cartridge to be taken out Without'being fired.

' .It is, however, not absolutely necessary that the vrdimm-spring m3 should be more powerful than the uncooked'propelling-spring k,

because the breech-bolt may also be drawn back by hand (without having been first pushed back by the firing-spring) after the grooved nib p has been lowered by pressing with the linger upon the corresponding knob p2, attached to the lever p and projecting outwardly through the stock. Indeed it is very desirable that the propellingspring Z; of the breech-bolt and alsothe stock-spring c of the barrel should be as Weak as possible, in order that powder charges .of very slight backward pressure and very light projectiles may be used.` Consequently the propellingspring` k ot the breech-bolt. should not be made more powerful than is necessary in view of the described relations between it and the firing-spring ma.

For the purpose of makin g the stock-spring c of the barrel a as weak asv possible and ot consequently being able to employ powdery charges having a very weak recoil v and projectiles of any desired lightness the lateral surfaces of the usual projections or lockingv'ings Z on thc breech-closing head Z are not axially rectilinear, but are in the shape of a helix, which has an equa-l but opposite pitch to that ol the groove Z3 in the breech-closing head Z, in which groove Z3 engage pins or shoul-' ders e3, projecting inwardly from the Wall of the breech-bolt.v (See Figs. 1c, 3, and 8..) The inner j nojcctionsv or lugs a' in the real socket a* of the barrel a have a pitch similar to that of the v'Wings Z2, j ust lL'lese'ribed. The helical grooves Z3 in the breech-closing head Z terminate at the rear in a groove Z4, which extends at right angles to the axis of the'head Z and with which there connect the entrancegrooves Z5 for the aforesaidpins es of the breech-bolt, Figs. t and 7.

When the breech-closing head Z,whioh closes the rear mouth of the barrel, couples together.. theF barrel a and the breech-bolt e, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the front end of ther said head l rests or bears against the rear surface y a? of the barrel a; The wings Zf of the breechroo closing head Z are then in front of the lugs a of the socket a", and the shoulders or pins e? of the wall of the breech-bolt are in the fore part of the tiret-mentioned helical grooves Za of thebreech-closingheadl. Thusgconnected ros i the barrel a, and the breech-bolt anezreeoiled to a sucient extent by the vbackr'mn-.d pres-" 4sure of the gases for eiecting the passage of the nose e' of the breech-bolt-bchind the nib 9, whereby the said breech-bolt is caught, as already stated above.. The barrel a, which shoots forward again at once, pulls the breechclosing head Zforward with it, so that there-` by the front helical grooves Za of the head ZT: slide along or over the pins ea of the breechbolt. In consequence the 'breech-closing head Z is rotated and its Wings Z2 turned in front of the passages between the projections or lugs t a of the socket a", whereupon these lugs a", slide forward along the projections or wings Z2 of'the head Z and rotate them in the same direction as that'in which the breech-closing,v head Z is rotated by the helical grooves Z3.

ris

- Thus all possibility of jamming between the barrel or socket ai, respectively, and the breech-closing head Z is obviated, and thc bari rel can be projected forward into its liring v `position* bya Weak spring, thereby rendering possible the use of powder charges having a small recoil and of light p roj-:ct-ilcs. l

As soon as the pins eB of the breech-bolt have entered the perpendicular groove Z4 of the closing-head Z the latter is held hack and is rotated, still Without jamming, only to such an extent that two of the Wings Z2, leaving the rear mouth or socket a4 of the b arrel, rest on the sliding bars-a3, which are extensions of the socket a or its lugs a', respectively, and are guided, as already described, by means of a dovetail-shaped groove of'the frame lr.

The two opposite Wings that'lie on the firstmentioned Abars a3 prevent, therefore, the breech-closinghead Z from being further rotated, which, consequently, also in this position-that is to say, nnrotated and undistu rbed--will be moved forward again with the breech-bolt, when, but not until, the latter is liberated by depressing the-nib g. The wings Z2 of the breech-closing head Z, moved forward by the released and returning breech-bolt e, pass then in between the locking-lngs'a of the socket a, and the breech-closing head l, now rotating, strikes against the rear surface a2 ot' the barrel a. The 'head Z then remains stationary in a longitudinal direction and is only in consequence of the further forward movement of the breech-bolt and its` pin e3 rotated to such an extent that its wings Z2- again pass in front of the locking-l ugs a', pro- .vided in the socket a* behind the cartridgechamber of the barrel and again couple the socket a4 or barrel a, respectively. The parts thus connected and locked cannotbe discon-4 nected by shocks exerted or imparted against.

, the forward surface of the breech-closing head Z, while on drawing the barrel from the breechbolt,or vice versa, the uncoupling takes place quite easily.

Having fully described my'invention, what `I desire to claim and se'curcby Letters Pattent is--" l. The combination with the endw isc-mov- 4and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination with the breech-bolt and firing-pin provided with radial lugs e', m', respectively, and the levers i', p; of the trigger-lever o and a fulcrum-pin common to all three levers, and meansfor depressing the uptnrned nibs or noses thereof independently of one another, substantially as and for th purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in presence of two witnesses, this 1 7th day of Janny ary, 1896. n)

CLAUS CLAUSIUS.

Witnesses:

ALEXANDER lSPEcH'r,

- MAX KACMPFF, l 

